The Ongoing Story

It's 47 million years since Ida died; around 25 years since she was excavated from Messel Pit; and just over 2 years since Dr Jørn Hurum acquired her fossil for the University of Oslo Natural History Museum.

On Tuesday 19th May 2009, Ida was finally presented to the world. Unsurprisingly, this extraordinary fossil got attention from news organizations across the globe, and has become a talking point for everyone interested in palaeontology. Google even changed their icon on Wednesday 20th May to a design including an image of Ida!

Even in the early reports of the discovery there has been much debate about Ida's place in the evolution of primates. And not everyone agrees with the scientists' desire that Ida should be seen and understood by everyone, rather than being preserved for scientific study. But Ida has already inspired millions of people to take an interest in our evolution, and in how our world developed over millions of years.

RevealingTheLink.com is continuing to follow on the ongoing story of Ida. You can read some of the coverage through the links below.